II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 862 

To provide for a comprehensive Gulf of Mexico restoration plan, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 14, 2011 

Mr. NELSON of Florida introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

A BILL 

To provide for a comprehensive Gulf of Mexico restoration 

plan, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Comprehensive Gulf 

5 of Mexico Recovery, Restoration, and Resiliency Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) CITIZENS’ ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The 

9 term ‘‘Citizens’ Advisory Committee’’ means the 


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1 Gulf of Mexico Regional Citizens’ Advisory Com2 mittee established by section 8(a). 

3 (2) CLEAN ENERGY PRODUCTION AND DEVEL4 OPMENT.—The term ‘‘clean energy production and 

5 development’’ means any electricity generation, 

6 transmission, storage, heating, cooling, industrial 

7 process, or manufacturing project the primary pur8 pose of which is the deployment, development, or 

9 production of an energy system or technology that 

10 avoids, reduces, or sequesters air pollutants or an11 thropogenic greenhouse gases. 

12 (3) COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Council’’ means the 

13 Gulf of Mexico Recovery Council established by sec14 tion 3(a). 

15 (4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti16 ty’’ means an organization that— 

17 (A) is a consortium of 1 or more public 

18 and private institutions of higher education in 

19 a Gulf State; 

20 (B) is formally established by a board of 

21 higher education in a Gulf State for the pur22 pose of collaborating on marine science re23 search; 

24 (C) carries out 1 or more operations that 

25 are physically located in the Gulf coast; and 


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1 (D) demonstrates experience arising 

2 from— 

3 (i) the conduct of the types of activi4 ties described in section 6; and 

5 (ii) the ability to carry out each re6 quirement described in subsections (c), (d), 

7 and (e) of section 6. 

8 (5) FEDERAL AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Federal 

9 agency’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

10 1004 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 

11 6903). 

12 (6) FISHERY ENDOWMENT.—The term ‘‘Fish13 ery Endowment’’ means the Gulf of Mexico Fishery 

14 Endowment established under section 7(a). 

15 (7) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Gulf 

16 of Mexico Recovery Fund established by section 

17 4(a). 

18 (8) GULF.—The term ‘‘Gulf’’ means the sub19 merged land of the outer Continental Shelf, and the 

20 areas of the exclusive economic zone of the United 

21 States, within the Gulf of Mexico, including associ22 ated coastal watersheds, estuaries, beaches, and wet23 lands. 

24 (9) GULF COAST.—The term ‘‘Gulf coast’’ 

25 means— 


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1 (A) each coastal zone (as determined pur2 suant to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 

3 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.)) of each Gulf 

4 State (including water adjacent to the Gulf 

5 State); and 

6 (B) submerged land of the outer Conti7 nental Shelf located in the Gulf of Mexico. 

8 (10) GULF OIL SPILL.—The term ‘‘Gulf oil 

9 spill’’ means the discharge of oil and the use of oil 

10 dispersants that began in 2010 in connection with 

11 the blowout and explosion of the mobile offshore 

12 drilling unit Deepwater Horizon that occurred on 

13 April 20, 2010, and resulting hydrocarbon releases 

14 into the environment. 

15 (11) GULF STATE.—The term ‘‘Gulf State’’ 

16 means any of the States of— 

17 (A) Alabama; 

18 (B) Florida; 

19 (C) Louisiana; 

20 (D) Mississippi; and 

21 (E) Texas. 

22 (12) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

23 The term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

24 meaning given the term in section 102 of the Higher 

25 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002). 


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1 (13) LOCAL POLITICAL SUBDIVISION.—The 

2 term ‘‘local political subdivision’’ means any city, 

3 county, township, town, borough, parish, village, or 

4 other general purpose political subdivision of a 

5 State. 

6 (14) NATURAL RESOURCE TRUSTEE.—The term 

7 ‘‘natural resource trustee’’ means each of the Fed8 eral and State trustees designated under title I of 

9 the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et 

10 seq.) with respect to natural resource damages relat11 ing to the Gulf oil spill. 

12 (15) OBSERVATION SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘Ob13 servation System’’ means the Gulf of Mexico Obser14 vation System established under section 6(a). 

15 (16) PLAN.—The term ‘‘Plan’’ means the Com16 prehensive Gulf of Mexico Recovery Plan developed 

17 under section 5(a). 

18 (17) STRATEGY.—The term ‘‘Strategy’’ means 

19 the regional ecosystem restoration strategy developed 

20 by the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task 

21 Force established by Executive Order 13554 (16 

22 U.S.C. 1451 note; relating to the Gulf Coast Eco23 system Restoration Task Force). 


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1 SEC. 3. GULF OF MEXICO RECOVERY COUNCIL. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Gulf 

3 of Mexico Recovery Council. 

4 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Council shall be composed of 

5 each member of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration 

6 Task Force established by Executive Order 13554 (16 

7 U.S.C. 1451 note; relating to the Gulf Coast Ecosystem 

8 Restoration Task Force). 

9 (c) CHAIRPERSON.—The President shall select a 

10 Chairperson from among the members of the Council. 

11 (d) DUTIES.—The Council, in coordination with the 

12 natural resource trustees, shall— 

13 (1) develop the Plan; 

14 (2) establish guidelines for the provision of, and 

15 provide, grants in accordance with subsection (e); 

16 (3) establish the Observation System; 

17 (4) establish the Fishery Endowment; 

18 (5) coordinate the sharing of scientific informa19 tion and other research associated with Gulf coast 

20 economic development, ecosystem restoration, and 

21 public health rehabilitation; 

22 (6) form partnerships with Federal and State 

23 agencies, institutions of higher education, research 

24 consortia, private companies, and other relevant en25 tities; and 


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1 (7) submit to the appropriate committees of 

2 Congress an annual report under subsection (f). 

3 (e) GRANTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Using amounts made avail5 able for expenditure from the Fund for a fiscal year, 

6 the Council shall provide grants in accordance with 

7 this subsection. 

8 (2) GRANTS TO LOCAL POLITICAL SUBDIVI9 SIONS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—For each fiscal year, of 

11 the amounts made available for expenditure 

12 from the Fund, the Council shall use 45 percent 

13 of the amounts to provide grants to local polit14 ical subdivisions. 

15 (B) REQUEST FOR GRANT PROPOSALS.— 

16 Not later than 30 days after the date of enact17 ment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter 

18 until such time as the percentage of amounts 

19 specified in subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year 

20 has been provided in the form of grants under 

21 this paragraph, the Council shall issue to each 

22 local political subdivision affected by the Gulf 

23 oil spill, as determined by the Council, a re24 quest for proposal for grants for activities relat25 ing to Gulf coast economic development, ecoVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:55 Apr 19, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S862.IS S862

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1 system restoration, and public health rehabilita2 tion, including— 

3 (i) environmental restoration and re4 mediation (including remediation in coastal 

5 and marine ecosystems); 

6 (ii) academic and applied research re7 garding the economy, environment, and 

8 public health of the local political subdivi9 sion; 

10 (iii) seafood marketing; 

11 (iv) tourism and tourism marketing; 

12 (v) coastal land acquisition; 

13 (vi) ecosystem resource planning; 

14 (vii) renewable and clean energy pro15 duction and development, energy conserva16 tion, and related retrofitting projects; 

17 (viii) workforce development; and 

18 (ix) environmental education. 

19 (C) CONSISTENCY WITH REGIONAL ECO20 SYSTEM RESTORATION STRATEGY.—The Coun21 cil shall ensure that any funds made available 

22 under this paragraph shall be used for projects 

23 and activities that are consistent with the Strat24 egy. 


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1 (D) TIMING OF PROVISION OF GRANTS.— 

2 The Council shall provide a grant under this 

3 paragraph not later than 120 days after the 

4 date on which the Council receives a proposal 

5 for the grant described in subparagraph (B). 

6 (3) GRANTS FROM COUNCIL FOR PLAN AND OB7 SERVATION SYSTEM.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—For each fiscal year, of 

9 the amounts made available for expenditure 

10 from the Fund, the Council shall use 50 percent 

11 of the amounts to provide grants for use in— 

12 (i) funding projects, programs, or ac13 tivities to meet the goals described in sec14 tion 5(b); and 

15 (ii) carrying out section 6. 

16 (B) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.—The Council 

17 may provide a grant under this paragraph— 

18 (i) for a purpose described in subpara19 graph (A)(i), to— 

20 (I) a Federal or State agency; 

21 (II) an institution of higher edu22 cation; or 

23 (III) a local political subdivision; 

24 and 


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1 (ii) for the purpose described in sub2 paragraph (A)(ii), to eligible entities se3 lected by the Council under section 

4 6(b)(2)(A). 

5 (C) CONDITION FOR RECEIPT OF GRANT.— 

6 As a condition on the receipt of a grant under 

7 this paragraph, and eligible recipient described 

8 in subparagraph (B)(i) shall agree to coordinate 

9 with the Council to develop and modify pro10 posed projects to address needs under, and 

11 achieve the goals of, the Plan. 

12 (4) METHOD OF ALLOCATION.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Council shall allo14 cate the amounts to be used within each Gulf 

15 State under this paragraph in accordance with 

16 subparagraph (B). 

17 (B) ALLOCATION.— 

18 (i) PROPORTIONATE SHARE OF

19 LENGTH OF GULF COAST SHORELINE.—Of 

20 the amounts allocated to a Gulf State de21 scribed in subparagraph (A) for each fiscal 

22 year, 60 percent shall be allocated based 

23 on the proportion that, as determined by 

24 the Council based on the most recently 

25 available data from, or accepted by, the 


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1 Office of Coast Survey of the National 

2 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra3 tion— 

4 (I) the aggregate length of the 

5 Gulf coast shoreline of the Gulf State; 

6 bears to 

7 (II) the aggregate length of the 

8 Gulf coast shoreline of all Gulf States. 

9 (ii) PROPORTIONATE SHARE OF AG10 GREGATE POPULATION.—Of the amounts 

11 allocated to a Gulf State described in sub12 paragraph (A) for each fiscal year, 40 per13 cent shall be allocated based on the propor14 tion that, as determined by the Council 

15 based on data collected during the most re16 cent decennial census— 

17 (I) the aggregate population of 

18 all counties located, in whole or in 

19 part, within the designated Gulf coast 

20 boundaries of the Gulf State; bears to 

21 (II) the aggregate population of 

22 all counties located, in whole or in 

23 part, within the designated Gulf coast 

24 boundaries in all Gulf States. 


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1 (iii) ADJUSTMENT AUTHORITY.—In 

2 carrying out this paragraph for a fiscal 

3 year, the Council may increase or decrease 

4 the percentages of funds provided under 

5 clauses (i) and (ii) for the fiscal year by 

6 not more than 5 percent, based on the se7 verity of impacts of the Gulf oil spill on a 

8 particular Gulf State, as determined by the 

9 Council, on the condition that the total of 

10 the percentages under those clauses re11 mains 100 percent after all such increases 

12 and decreases. 

13 (5) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Not more 

14 than 5 percent of the amount of any grant provided 

15 under this subsection may be used for administrative 

16 expenses. 

17 (6) FISHERY ENDOWMENT.—For each fiscal 

18 year, an amount equal to 5 percent of the amounts 

19 in the Fund shall be— 

20 (A) deposited by the Council in a sub21 account in the Treasury; and 

22 (B) made available to the Administrator of 

23 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin24 istration and the Regional Gulf of Mexico Fish25 ery Management Council for use in adminVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:55 Apr 19, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S862.IS S862

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1 istering and implementing the Fishery Endow2 ment. 

3 (f) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than September 

4 30, 2012, and annually thereafter, the Council shall sub5 mit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report 

6 that, for the period covered by the report, contains a de7 scription of each— 

8 (1) activity of the Council, including each grant 

9 provided by the Council under subsection (e); and 

10 (2) policy, plan, activity, and project carried out 

11 under this Act. 

12 (g) AUTHORITY TO TRANSFER FUND.—The Council 

13 may transfer amounts from the Fund to Federal agencies 

14 for the purpose of carrying out this Act, including for the 

15 purposes of— 

16 (1) carrying out Plan; 

17 (2) administering the Fishery Endowment; and 

18 (3) administering the Observation System. 

19 (h) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY

20 COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act 

21 (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Council. 

22 SEC. 4. GULF OF MEXICO RECOVERY FUND. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

24 Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the 


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1 ‘‘Gulf of Mexico Recovery Fund’’, to be administered by 

2 the Council for authorized uses described in subsection (c). 

3 (b) TRANSFERS TO FUND.—Notwithstanding any 

4 other provision of law, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 

5 deposit in the Fund amounts equal to not less than 100 

6 percent of any amounts collected by the United States be7 fore, on, or after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

8 available on or after the date of enactment of this Act, 

9 as penalties, settlements, or fines under sections 309 and 

10 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 

11 U.S.C. 1319, 1321) in relation to the Gulf oil spill. 

12 (c) AUTHORIZED USES.—Amounts in the Fund shall 

13 be available to the Council for the conduct of activities 

14 relating to Gulf coast economic development, ecosystem 

15 restoration, and public health rehabilitation in accordance 

16 with this Act, including the provision of grants under sec17 tion 3(e). 

18 SEC. 5. COMPREHENSIVE GULF OF MEXICO RECOVERY 

19 PLAN. 

20 (a) DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN.—In accordance with 

21 subsection (b), the Council, in accordance with the Strat22 egy and taking into consideration the advice of the Sci23 entific Advisory Committee and the Citizens’ Advisory 

24 Committee, shall develop a comprehensive plan to restore, 


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1 revitalize, and increase the resiliency of the Gulf of Mexico 

2 ecosystem. 

3 (b) GOALS.—The goals of the Plan shall include, with 

4 respect to the Gulf coast— 

5 (1) ecosystem monitoring; and 

6 (2) ecosystem recovery and resiliency, with an 

7 emphasis on a holistic, comprehensive approach cov8 ering coastal, nearshore, deep water. 

9 (c) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Council shall provide 

10 grants under section 4(c)(3)(A) for use in funding 

11 projects, programs, or activities to meet the goals de12 scribed in subsection (b). 

13 SEC. 6. GULF OF MEXICO OBSERVATION SYSTEM. 

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Council shall establish 

15 the Gulf of Mexico Observation System to observe, mon16 itor, and map the Gulf in a comprehensive manner. 

17 (b) ADMINISTRATION.—The Observation System 

18 shall be— 

19 (1) implemented through a Gulf of Mexico Ex20 ploration Research Center; and 

21 (2) administered by 1 or more eligible entities 

22 that— 

23 (A) are selected by the Council based on 

24 an application demonstrating the ability of the 

25 eligible entity to carry out this section; and 


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1 (B) receive a grant for that purpose under 

2 section 3(e)(3)(A)(ii). 

3 (c) FACILITATION OF EXISTING TECHNOLOGIES.— 

4 An eligible entity administering the Observation System 

5 under subsection (b) shall facilitate the use of existing 

6 technologies to quickly increase, to the maximum extent 

7 practicable, observation and monitoring capabilities in the 

8 Gulf. 

9 (d) DEVELOPMENT OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES.—An el10 igible entity administering the Observation System under 

11 subsection (b) shall facilitate the development of new mon12 itoring technologies. 

13 (e) COORDINATION WITH NATIONAL INTEGRATED

14 COASTAL AND OCEAN OBSERVATION SYSTEM.—The 

15 Council shall ensure that the Observation System is devel16 oped in coordination with the National Integrated Coastal 

17 and Ocean Observation System established under section 

18 12304(a) of the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observa19 tion System Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3603(a)). 

20 SEC. 7. GULF OF MEXICO FISHERY ENDOWMENT. 

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—As soon as practicable after 

22 the date of enactment of this Act, the Council shall estab23 lish a fishery endowment to ensure, to the maximum ex24 tent practicable, the long-term sustainability of fish stocks 


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1 and the recreational, commercial, and charter fishing in2 dustry in the Gulf of Mexico. 

3 (b) FUNDING.—For each fiscal year, of the amounts 

4 made available for expenditure from the subaccount de5 scribed in section 3(e)(6)(A), 95 percent of the interest 

6 accrued in the subaccount may be expended for, with re7 spect to the Gulf of Mexico— 

8 (1) data collection and stock assessments; 

9 (2) pilot programs for— 

10 (A) fishery independent data; and 

11 (B) spawning aggregations reduction; 

12 (3) cooperative research; and 

13 (4) training and education on sustainable fish14 ing practices and gear use. 

15 (c) ADMINISTRATION; IMPLEMENTATION.—The Fish16 ery Endowment shall be— 

17 (1) administered by the Administrator of the 

18 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; 

19 and 

20 (2) implemented by the Regional Gulf of Mexico 

21 Fishery Management Council. 

22 SEC. 8. CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Citi24 zens’ Advisory Committee. 

25 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Citizens’ Advisory Com2 mittee shall be composed of 39 members, of whom— 

3 (A) 30 members shall be voting mem4 bers— 

5 (i) of whom— 

6 (I) 6 members shall be residents 

7 of, and represent, the State of Ala8 bama; 

9 (II) 6 members shall be residents 

10 of, and represent, the State of Flor11 ida; 

12 (III) 6 members shall be resi13 dents of, and represent, the State of 

14 Louisiana; 

15 (IV) 6 members shall be resi16 dents of, and represent, the State of 

17 Mississippi; and 

18 (V) 6 members shall be residents 

19 of, and represent, the State of Texas; 

20 and 

21 (ii) each of whom shall represent an 

22 interest of the State of which the member 

23 represents, including an interest relating 

24 to— 


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1 (I) the commercial fin fish and 

2 shellfish industry; 

3 (II) the charter fishing industry; 

4 (III) the restaurant, hotel, and 

5 tourism industries; 

6 (IV) indigenous peoples commu7 nities; 

8 (V) the marine and coastal con9 servation community; and 

10 (VI) incorporated and unincor11 porated municipalities; and 

12 (B) 9 members shall be nonvoting mem13 bers, of whom— 

14 (i) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

15 and represent, the Secretary of the depart16 ment in which the Coast Guard is oper17 ating; 

18 (ii) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

19 and represent, the Administrator of the 

20 Environmental Protection Agency; 

21 (iii) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

22 and represent, the Administrator of the 

23 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin24 istration; 


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1 (iv) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

2 and represent, the Secretary of the Inte3 rior; 

4 (v) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

5 and represent, the lead maritime environ6 mental and natural resources management 

7 and enforcement agency of the State of 

8 Alabama; 

9 (vi) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

10 and represent, the lead maritime environ11 mental and natural resources management 

12 and enforcement agency of the State of 

13 Florida; 

14 (vii) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

15 and represent, the lead maritime environ16 mental and natural resources management 

17 and enforcement agency of the State of 

18 Louisiana; 

19 (viii) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

20 and represent, the lead maritime environ21 mental and natural resources management 

22 and enforcement agency of the State of 

23 Mississippi; and 

24 (ix) 1 member shall be appointed by, 

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1 mental and natural resources management 

2 and enforcement agency of the State of 

3 Texas. 

4 (2) GEOGRAPHIC BALANCE.—Voting and non5 voting members representing States shall be ap6 pointed equally from each State represented on the 

7 Citizens’ Advisory Committee. 

8 (c) TERMS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para10 graph (2), the voting members of the Citizens’ Advi11 sory Committee shall be appointed for a term of 3 

12 years. 

13 (2) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—To establish the 

14 terms of the group of first appointments of voting 

15 members to the Citizens’ Advisory Committee, a 

16 drawing of lots among the initial members shall be 

17 conducted under which— 

(A) 1 18 ⁄3 of the group shall serve for a period 

19 of 3 years; 

(B) 1 20 ⁄3 of the group shall serve for a period 

21 of 2 years; and 

(C) 1 22 ⁄3 of the group shall serve for a period 

23 1 year. 

24 (3) DURATION OF COMMITTEE.—The authority 

25 of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee shall continue 


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1 during the lifetime of energy development, transpor2 tation, and facility removal activities in the Gulf of 

3 Mexico. 

4 (d) ADMINISTRATION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Citizens’ Advisory Com6 mittee shall— 

7 (A) elect a Chairperson from among the 

8 members of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee; 

9 (B) select a staff; and 

10 (C) make policies with regard to the inter11 nal operating procedures of the Citizens’ Advi12 sory Committee. 

13 (2) SELF-GOVERNANCE.— 

14 (A) INITIAL MEETING.—After the date on 

15 which the Secretary of the department in which 

16 the Coast Guard is operating conducts an initial 

17 organizational meeting for the Citizens’ Advi18 sory Committee, the Citizens’ Advisory Com19 mittee shall be self-governing. 

20 (B) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 60 

21 days after the date on which all members of the 

22 Citizens’ Advisory Committee have been ap23 pointed, the Citizens’ Advisory Committee shall 

24 hold the initial meeting of the Citizens’ Advi25 sory Committee. 


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1 (C) PERIODIC MEETINGS.—The Citizens’ 

2 Advisory Committee shall conduct meetings not 

3 less frequently than 1 meeting per calendar 

4 year. 

5 (3) TRANSPARENCY.—Subject to subsection 

6 (e)(2), the Citizens’ Advisory Committee shall— 

7 (A) conduct the operations of the Citizens’ 

8 Advisory Committee in a manner that is acces9 sible by the public; 

10 (B) ensure that each work product adopted 

11 by the Citizens’ Advisory Committee is publicly 

12 accessible; 

13 (C) conduct not less than 1 meeting during 

14 each calendar year that is open to the public, 

15 for which the Citizens’ Advisory Committee 

16 shall provide public notice not later than 30 

17 days before the date of the meeting; and 

18 (D) maintain a public Web site containing, 

19 at a minimum— 

20 (i) recommendations made by the Citi21 zens’ Advisory Committee, and information 

22 as to whether the recommendations have 

23 been adopted (including an explanation of 

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1 mittee for not adopting a recommenda2 tion); 

3 (ii) a description of plans under re4 view, carried out in a manner that does 

5 not disclose any confidential or privileged 

6 information; 

7 (iii) a statement of industry stand8 ards; and 

9 (iv) an interactive component that en10 ables the public— 

11 (I) to submit questions and com12 ments; and 

13 (II) to report problems. 

14 (4) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—An individual 

15 selected as a voting member of the Citizens’ Advi16 sory Committee may not engage in any activity that 

17 may conflict with the execution of the functions or 

18 duties of the individual as a member of the Citizens’ 

19 Advisory Committee. 

20 (e) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES AND

21 INDUSTRY.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Citizens’ Advisory Com23 mittee may request directly from any Federal agency 

24 information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics to 

25 carry out this section. 


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1 (2) ACCESS.—The Citizens’ Advisory Com2 mittee shall have access to— 

3 (A) facilities and nonproprietary records of 

4 the oil and gas industry that are relevant to the 

5 proper execution of the duties of the Citizens’ 

6 Advisory Committee under this section; and 

7 (B) records containing proprietary infor8 mation if— 

9 (i) the records are relevant to the 

10 proper execution of the duties of the Citi11 zens’ Advisory Committee under this sec12 tion; and 

13 (ii) the proprietary information is re14 dacted to the extent necessary and appro15 priate. 

16 (f) COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS.—All rec17 ommendations of the Committee shall only be advisory. 

18 (g) LOCATION AND COMPENSATION.— 

19 (1) OFFICE LOCATIONS.—The Council shall es20 tablish offices in 1 or more Gulf States, as the Citi21 zens’ Advisory Committee determines to be nec22 essary and appropriate to carry out the operations 

23 of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee. 

24 (2) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Citi25 zens’ Advisory Committee shall— 


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1 (A) serve without compensation; and 

2 (B) be allowed travel expenses, including 

3 per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates author4 ized for an employee of an agency under sub5 chapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States 

6 Code (except by express authorization of the 

7 Citizens’ Advisory Committee in any case in 

8 which the rates are inadequate to reimburse a 

9 member not eligible for travel rates of the Fed10 eral Government). 

11 (h) REPORTS.— 

12 (1) DUTY OF COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE

13 UNITED STATES.—Not later than 3 years after the 

14 date of establishment of the Citizens’ Advisory Com15 mittee, and every 3 years thereafter, the Comptroller 

16 General of the United States shall submit to the 

17 President and the appropriate committees of Con18 gress a report that contains a description of, for the 

19 period covered by the report, the operations and ex20 penditures of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee in 

21 carrying out this section (including any rec22 ommendation of the Comptroller General of the 

23 United States). 

24 (2) DUTY OF CITIZENS’ ADVISORY COM25 MITTEE.—Not later than 2 years after the date of 


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1 establishment of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee, 

2 and every 2 years thereafter, the Citizens’ Advisory 

3 Committee shall submit to the appropriate commit4 tees of Congress a report that contains, for the pe5 riod covered by the report, a description of— 

6 (A) the extent of achievement of safe oper7 ations in the Gulf of oil and gas activities; 

8 (B) unresolved problems and concerns with 

9 operations, activities, and plans; and 

10 (C) the operations and expenditures, 

11 needs, issues, and recommendations of the Citi12 zens’ Advisory Committee. 

13 SEC. 9. SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Sci15 entific Advisory Committee to provide advice to the Coun16 cil regarding the science behind the Plan and long-term 

17 monitoring and restoration of the Gulf coast ecosystem. 

18 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Scientific Advisory Com19 mittee shall be composed of 16 members, of whom— 

20 (1) 10 shall be voting members, of whom— 

21 (A) with respect to the State of Alabama, 

22 2 members shall be appointed by the State, of 

23 whom— 


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1 (i) 1 shall be a scientist employed by 

2 an institution of higher education located 

3 in the State; and 

4 (ii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

5 environmental protection or quality agency 

6 of the State; 

7 (B) with respect to the State of Florida, 2 

8 members shall be appointed by the State, of 

9 whom— 

10 (i) 1 shall be a scientist employed by 

11 an institution of higher education located 

12 in the State; and 

13 (ii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

14 environmental protection or quality agency 

15 of the State; 

16 (C) with respect to the State of Louisiana, 

17 2 members shall be appointed by the State, of 

18 whom— 

19 (i) 1 shall be a scientist employed by 

20 an institution of higher education located 

21 in the State; and 

22 (ii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

23 environmental protection or quality agency 

24 of the State; 


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1 (D) with respect to the State of Mis2 sissippi, 2 members shall be appointed by the 

3 State, of whom— 

4 (i) 1 shall be a scientist employed by 

5 an institution of higher education located 

6 in the State; and 

7 (ii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

8 environmental protection or quality agency 

9 of the State; and 

10 (E) with respect to the State of Texas, 2 

11 members shall be appointed by the State, of 

12 whom— 

13 (i) 1 shall be a scientist employed by 

14 an institution of higher education located 

15 in the State; and 

16 (ii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

17 environmental protection or quality agency 

18 of the State; and 

19 (2) 4 shall be nonvoting members, of whom— 

20 (A) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

21 Administrator of the National Oceanic and At22 mospheric Administration; 

23 (B) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

24 Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

25 Agency; 


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1 (C) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

2 Director of the National Institute for Standards 

3 and Technology; and 

4 (D) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

5 Secretary of the Interior. 

6 (c) DUTIES.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

7 of enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, the 

8 Scientific Advisory Committee shall prepare and submit 

9 to the Council a report that describes, for the period cov10 ered by the report, the science regarding— 

11 (1) impacts to the Gulf and Gulf coast from the 

12 Gulf oil spill; 

13 (2) the progress of restoration activities for the 

14 Gulf and Gulf coast; and 

15 (3) the implementation of the Plan. 

16 SEC. 10. EFFECT ON OTHER LAW. 

17 Nothing in this section supersedes or otherwise af18 fects any provision of Federal law, including, in particular, 

19 laws providing recovery for injury to natural resources 

20 under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C 2701 et. 

21 seq.). 

Æ 


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